694th Friday Blog Roundup

I hear Laurel.  I only hear Laurel.  Full stop.

The twins hear Yammy.  (With an M!).  They only hear Yammy.  I think they’re playing me.

I don’t even hear Yanny when I’m using the NYT’s audio tool.

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We cut down a tree in our front yard, the one we called Pete.  I wanted him trimmed back because he had gotten too tall, but the tree guy talked us into removing him.  At the time, his explanation made sense.  After he was done chopping down my friend, I couldn’t remember why we had to go to this extreme.

I still feel sad every time I walk out of the house and see the empty space.

A few hours after he chopped down the tree, a squirrel came by with an acorn, and he kept circling the stump, wondering where his home went.  That gutted me.

So now we need to plant something new in the space.  We should probably first check with the homeowner’s association because I am doing this once.  I really hate change.

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Stop procrastinating.  Go make your backups.  Don’t have regrets.

Seriously.  Stop what you’re doing for a moment.  It will take you fifteen minutes, tops.  But you will have peace of mind for days and days.  It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments in order to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

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And now the blogs…

But first, second helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week.  In order to read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• “Eleven” (Lavender Luz) — yes, it’s below, too, because it was on last Friday
• “For My Best Friend (Who Will One Day Get Me a Quokka)” (Stirrup Queens) — thank you, Cristy!
• “Missed” (Bent Not Broken)
• “Microblog Mondays: A Beautiful Birthday” (My Path to Mommyhood)
• “Microblog Mondays: Flaunting Ignorance” (Shail’s Nest)

Okay, now my choices this week.

It’s Inconceivable has a post about being asked about the “fault” of their infertility.  She writes, “Those who tread a similar path know that although you can be healed, there are some things that still take your breath away a bit – and this was one of them.”  This post is a must-read.  For everyone. [And it was nominated in last’s week’s second helpings, but I had it for this week.]

Bent Not Broken has a beautiful post about a small act of kindness; a person who noticed and ended a conversation with grace.  It feels like a poem; both the moment and the post.

Lavender Luz’s blog just turned 11, and she has a post about its tween years.  I’ve never really thought about it as mirroring age groups, but my own blog certainly doesn’t feel as it did 12 years ago.  Blogs, like blog writers, grow up.  Congratulations on hitting this amazing milestone.

Lastly, Pages, Stages, and Rages has a post about Mother’s Day, and how it went completely wrong and right at the same time.  As she writes, “This is what I signed up for.”  It’s a perfect summation of the experience.

The roundup to the Roundup: I only hear Laurel.  My tree is gone.  Your weekly backup nudge.  And lots of great posts to read.  So what did you find this week?  Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between May 11th and 18th) and not the blog’s main url. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week?  Read the original open thread post here.